Social partners to implement agreement on harassment and violence at work

Six social partner organisations met in October 2009 to negotiate the implementation of the European framework agreement on harassment and violence at work in Poland. Both sides confirmed their commitment to the negotiations and agreed that, although the dialogue is autonomous, it may be necessary to prepare labour law recommendations for the government. The social partners also pointed to different barriers to implementing the agreement.

The European framework agreement on harassment and violence at work (4.7Mb PDF) (EU0705019I), concluded on 27 April 2007, requires that employer organisations and trade unions cooperate on the improvement of working conditions by establishing and promoting mechanisms to eliminate harassment and violence occurring at company level.

On 20 October 2009, in Poland’s capital city of Warsaw, the first meeting negotiating the implementation of the European framework agreement – the third voluntary and autonomous agreement concluded by the European social partners – was held between delegates from the representative trade unions and employer organisations: namely, the Independent and Self-Governing Trade Union ‘Solidarity’ (Niezalezny Samorządny Związek Zawodowy ‘Solidarność’, NSZZ Solidarność), the All-Poland Alliance of Trade Unions (Ogólnopolskie Porozumienie Związków Zawodowych, OPZZ), the Trade Union Forum (Forum Związków Zawodowych, FZZ), the Confederation of Polish Employers (Konfederacja Pracodawców Polskich, KPP), the Polish Confederation of Private Employers Lewiatan (Polska Konfederacja Pracodawców Prywatnych Lewiatan, PKPP Lewiatan) and the Union of Polish Craftsmen (Związek Rzemiosła Polskiego, ZRP). The meeting marked the beginning of negotiations on Poland’s implementation of the European framework agreement on harassment and violence at work.

During the meeting, employer and trade union representatives accepted the final translation of the European framework agreement – up until then, two different translations had been in use. In addition, they agreed that raising awareness about problems concerning harassment and violence at work should be prioritised among members of both the employer and trade union organisations.

Concerns of employer organisations

Representatives of the employer organisations unanimously claim that the character of the negotiations will reflect the specificity of the concept of harassment and violence at work itself. To start with, violence is an easier concept to define, while harassment or respect for dignity are rather difficult to specify. Secondly, the agreement is applicable to a wide spectrum of relations, not just between the employee and employer: it also covers the relations between employee and customer (or patient, or student) and between employees. In addition, ZRP warned that it would be difficult to reach micro and small enterprises in order to raise awareness about harassment and violence at work and prevent their occurrence. This would necessitate organising a significant amount of training among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Trade union view

The trade union representatives, like the employer organisations, agree that the negotiations are going to be difficult, due to the vague definition of concepts such as ‘respect for dignity’, or ‘passive and active aggressive treatment’ – which, up until now, have not been used in the Polish labour code. At the same time, there is a need to define differences between mobbing, harassment and violence, which would be clear to both employers and employees.

Another problematic question is how to implement the agreement – for instance, either through a legal act or a declaration. The trade unions are concerned that the employers may be opposed to having a ‘rigid’ law passed regarding the issues of harassment and violence, or might insist on a degree of leniency or blurring with respect to these matters. The prospective legislative implementation is also set to be a difficult issue due to the anticipated reluctance of the government – which, the trade unions believe, lacks the goodwill to support autonomous dialogue.

Upcoming plans

In the course of further talks, it is expected that the negotiators will devise new proposals for specific instruments to be used by corporate management boards and trade union organisations. The negotiations are autonomous in character, which means they do not involve the government party. However, social partners do not exclude the possibility of formulating recommendations directed at the government – particularly the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy (Ministerstwo Pracy i Polityki Społecznej, MPiPS) – which could also address the amendment of existing legal regulations.

Commentary

Although negotiations concerning the European framework agreement on harassment and violence at the workplace will not be easy, as underlined by the employers and trade union representatives, both sides are willing to negotiate a compromise. However, in light of other debates that seem more urgent – for example, on the ongoing effects of the economic crisis or the pension system – it is unlikely that the discussion on implementing the agreement will be treated as a top priority in the social partner dialogue. While the negotiations are expected to proceed, it is likely that progress will be slow.

Ewelina Kuźmicz, Institute of Public Affairs (ISP)